The Baryon Acoustic Oscillations Simulator is an interactive web application that visualizes one of cosmology's most fascinating phenomena: the ripples in the distribution of matter originating from sound waves in the early universe. This simulator allows users to explore the fundamental processes that shaped our universe's large-scale structure.
- Interactive Visualization: Watch in real-time as sound waves propagate through the primordial plasma and shape the distribution of matter
- Adjustable Parameters: Customize the simulation with controls for:
- Number of particles
- Simulation speed
- Initial matter density
- Real-time Metrics: Track the simulation's progress with:
- Elapsed time in millions of years
- Universe scale factor
- Educational Content: Learn about BAO through integrated explanations and visual demonstrations
Baryon Acoustic Oscillations are the imprint of sound waves that propagated through the hot plasma of the early universe. These waves created a characteristic pattern in the distribution of matter that we can still observe today in galaxy surveys.
This simulation demonstrates:
- How initial density fluctuations created pressure waves
- How these waves propagated through the primordial plasma
- How the universe's expansion "froze" these waves into the matter distribution
- How this created the characteristic BAO scale (~150 Mpc) observed in galaxy surveys
The simulator uses pure JavaScript, HTML5, and CSS3 to create a physics-based particle system that models:
- Particle interactions with sound wave fronts
- Cosmological expansion effects
- Density fluctuation evolution
The simulation runs entirely in the browser with no external dependencies, making it accessible for educational use across different platforms.
This simulator serves as an excellent educational tool for:
- University-level cosmology courses
- Public outreach and science communication
- Self-directed learning about cosmic evolution
- Start the Simulation: Click the "Start Simulation" button to begin
- Adjust Parameters: Use the sliders to modify:
- Number of particles (100-2000)
- Simulation speed (1-10)
- Initial density (1-10)
- Pause/Resume: Click the same button to pause or resume the simulation
- Reset: Click "Reset" to start over with new initial conditions
The simulator works best in modern browsers:
- Chrome 60+
- Firefox 60+
- Safari 12+
- Edge 79+
To learn more about Baryon Acoustic Oscillations:
- Eisenstein, D. J., et al. (2005). "Detection of the Baryon Acoustic Peak in the Large-Scale Correlation Function of SDSS Luminous Red Galaxies"
- BOSS Collaboration (2017). "The clustering of galaxies in the completed SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey"
Contributions are welcome! Feel free to submit issues or pull requests to enhance the simulator's features or educational content.
This project is licensed under the Open Software License ("OSL") v 3.0 - see the LICENSE file for details.
Created for astronomy enthusiasts, cosmology students, and anyone curious about the universe's largest structures.